Playing the Villain

A few weeks later, Loki returned to Kamar-Taj and received a summons from Ian. He was surprised, since it was not yet time for his routine checkup, so the God of Mischief wondered privately about the purpose of this summons.

"You called for me?"

"I have a special mission for you," Ian said bluntly. "Do you remember the Avengers?"

"I do." Loki recalled how important these people had been in his original fate.

"I need you to help bring them together."

"You want me to pretend to be a villain and force them to form a team?"

"Exactly."

Loki frowned. "I assume this 'invasion' will be fake?"

"Yes."

"But once they discover the truth, wouldn't that backfire?"

"It might." Ian nodded. The Avengers had only become a team after the Battle of New York, but if they learned that everything had been fake, the team might fall apart.

"The risk is worth taking," Ian explained. "Besides, my goal isn't merely to bring them together. This invasion will expose Earth to cosmic threats. I intend to use this opportunity to manipulate its politics from the shadows and prepare Earth for the upcoming Fusion."

"Humans are so weak. Without magic, can they really be useful?" Loki asked.

"With the right technology, they'll make excellent infantry."

"That does make sense." Loki nodded. "How far do you want me to take this?"

"Push them to their limits, but don't go so far that they despair. We don't want to destroy their confidence."

"No problem." Loki grinned smugly. "Do you want me to use Genjutsu throughout the entire battle?"

"No. I want you to follow the script, obtain Thanos's Mind Stone, and control the Chitauri army. No one can die in this battle, but some property damage is acceptable." Humanity needed a wake-up call, and